Myshkin’s Ruby Warblers

Myshkin’s Ruby Warblers is a sort of traditional folk-jazz fusion, combining elements reminiscent of artists as diverse as Ani DiFranco and June Carter Cash. Myshkin’s voice is the highlight; she ranges from semi-scat to true warbling. The arrangements are full but not overblown, and the subject is regular people living in the war years. Corvidae, which takes its title from the Latin word for both the machines of war and the crows that clean up after them, looks unflinchingly at life but softens with the melodic vocal turns Myshkin takes. Among the high points are “Gypsytown,” with its refrain of “beans and bacon” (the staple of some working folks’ diet), and “Drunk,” which manages to capture the feeling perfectly. Literate music with a contemporary edge, it’s well worth a listen.